Albany composite
36.9 /100
Grade D · weighted across 7 dims
Metro comparison
Albany vs Portland
Albany, OR and Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA side by side, cost of living, rent, wages, crime, schools, childcare and environment, all from the same federal datasets so every number is directly comparable.
- 36.9
- Albany Life Score
- D
- Albany grade
- 45.7
- Portland Life Score
- C+
- Portland grade
Head-to-head verdict
Across the seven dimensions, Albany scores higher on 4 (cost of living, rent, safety, childcare) and Portland on 3 (wages, schools, environment). The radar shows the full shape; the tables below break out every figure.
Albany vs Portland across all seven dimensions (each scored 0–100 as a national percentile, bigger area = stronger overall)
Where each metro wins, and by how much
Every dimension is a national percentile (0–100). Each bar leans toward the stronger metro, a long lean is a decisive edge, a near-even split is a toss-up. The radar shows the overall shape; this shows the per-dimension margins.
◖ Albany Portland ◗
cost of living
15
7
wages
63
94
rent
31
11
safety
45
43
schools
74
79
childcare
26
24
environment
1
72
Albany and Portland differ across eleven dimensions of livability. Albany has a cost-of-living index of 102.1 vs Portland's 105.4 (national average = 100). Median salaries are $67,935 in Albany and $79,572 in Portland. A 2-bedroom averages $1,500/mo vs $1,922/mo.
How to read this matchup
Reading the Albany vs Portland Comparison
Albany (OR) and Portland (OR) are assembled here from the same federal data pipeline, BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, FBI Uniform Crime Reports, NCES public-school counts, and EPA environmental indicators, so every number on this page is directly comparable. The overall cost index reads 102.1 for Albany against 105.4 for Portland, a 3.3-point gap on a scale where 100 equals the U.S. average. HUD's 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent, the figure used to set housing-choice voucher payment standards, is $1,500/mo in Albany and $1,922/mo in Portland, a $422/mo difference that compounds to $5,064 over a year.
On wages, BLS OES reports a median salary of $67,935 across 42,220 jobs in Albany against $79,572 across 1,180,420 jobs in Portland. Adjusted through the BEA cost-of-living lens, $100,000 earned in Albany carries the same local purchasing power as $103,253 in Portland - the most honest way to read the salary headline, because nominal wages and rents move together in tight metros. State-level violent crime, the most reliable geographic tier FBI UCR publishes, is 334.6 per 100,000 residents in OR vs 334.6 in OR, with property-crime rates of 2409.8 and 2409.8 respectively.
Schools are reported at the state tier by NCES: OR lists 1,277 public schools at a 17.6:1 student-teacher ratio, while OR lists 1,277 schools at 17.6:1, a signal of class-size staffing, though individual district and school-level variation within each state is substantial. Department of Labor center-based infant care runs $12,639/yr in the Albany area versus $12,639/yr in Portland - a line item that shifts the real cost-of-living picture for households with children under five far more than headline RPP does. When these pieces are read together rather than in isolation, Albany and Portland are not simply "cheaper" or "more expensive" - they trade across dimensions, and which metro wins depends on whether your household optimizes for rent, wages, schools, childcare, safety, or environment. Treat the tables below as inputs to that trade-off, not as a single ranking.
Portland composite
45.7 /100
Grade C+ · weighted across 7 dims
Cost-of-living gap
-3.3 pts
Albany vs Portland BEA RPP
2-bed rent delta
$422 /mo
Portland priced higher
Composite life score on the national 0–100 scale
Albany
Albany composite (Grade D)
Portland
Portland composite (Grade C+)
Composite is a weighted roll-up of seven dimensions: cost (20%), wages (20%), rent (15%), safety (15%), schools (10%), childcare (10%), environment (10%). Each input normalized to a 0–100 percentile across all metros.
💰 Cost of Living BEA →
| Category | Albany | Portland |
|---|---|---|
| Overall RPP | 102.1 | 105.4 |
| Goods | 105.3 | 105.2 |
| Services | 104.8 | 107.0 |
| Rents | 101.1 | 125.1 |
Salary Equivalent Calculator
What salary in Portland gives the same purchasing power as your salary in Albany?
$
Equivalent in Portland:
$103,253
Based on BEA Regional Price Parities (Albany: 102.1, Portland: 105.4, national avg = 100).
🏠 Rent (Fair Market Rent) HUD →
| Bedrooms | Albany | Portland |
|---|---|---|
| Studio | $1,034/mo | $1,570/mo |
| 1 Bedroom | $1,236/mo | $1,677/mo |
| 2 Bedroom | $1,500/mo | $1,922/mo |
| 3 Bedroom | $2,030/mo | $2,619/mo |
| 4 Bedroom | $2,356/mo | $3,109/mo |
💼 Wages & Employment BLS →
| Metric | Albany | Portland |
|---|---|---|
| Avg Median Salary | $67,935 | $79,572 |
| Total Employment | 42,220 | 1,180,420 |
🛡️ Crime Rates (state-level) FBI →
| Crime Type (per 100K) | Albany (OR) | Portland (OR) |
|---|---|---|
| Violent Crime | 334.6 | 334.6 |
| Property Crime | 2409.8 | 2409.8 |
🎓 Schools (state-level) NCES →
| Metric | OR | OR |
|---|---|---|
| Total Schools | 1,277 | 1,277 |
| Student-Teacher Ratio | 17.6:1 | 17.6:1 |
| Charter Schools | 10.1% | 10.1% |
👶 Childcare Costs (Annual Avg) (state-level) DOL →
| Age Group | OR | OR |
|---|---|---|
| Infant (Center) | $12,639/yr | $12,639/yr |
| Toddler (Center) | $11,605/yr | $11,605/yr |
| Preschool (Center) | $9,385/yr | $9,385/yr |
🌿 Environment (state-level) EPA →
| Metric | OR | OR |
|---|---|---|
| EPA Facilities | 335 | 335 |
| Water Systems | 938 | 938 |
| Superfund Sites | 21 | 21 |
| Water Violations | 2,578 | 2,578 |
Government-verified data - Air quality (EPA AQS), water safety (EPA SDWIS), healthcare access (HRSA), and disaster risk (FEMA NRI) are sourced directly from U.S. federal agencies. No crowdsourced estimates.
💨 Air Quality (EPA AQS) EPA AQS →
| Metric | Albany | Portland |
|---|---|---|
| Median AQI | 25.0 | 38.0 |
| Good Air Days | 87.4% | 76.5% |
| Unhealthy Air Days | 0 days | 6 days |
💧 Water Safety (EPA SDWIS, state-level) EPA SDWIS →
| Metric | OR | OR |
|---|---|---|
| Water Safety Score | 2/100 | 2/100 |
| Total Violations | 206,659 | 206,659 |
| Health-Based Violations | 20,339 | 20,339 |
| Systems with Violations | 98.5% | 98.5% |
🏥 Healthcare Access (HRSA, state-level) HRSA →
| Metric | OR | OR |
|---|---|---|
| Healthcare Access Score | 0/100 | 0/100 |
| Population in Shortage Area | 100.0% | 100.0% |
| HPSA Designations | 403 | 403 |
HPSA = Health Professional Shortage Area, designated by HRSA. Higher access score = better healthcare availability.
⚠️ Natural Disaster Risk (FEMA NRI, state-level) FEMA NRI →
| Metric | OR | OR |
|---|---|---|
| Disaster Safety Score | 45/100 | 45/100 |
| NRI Risk Score (avg county) | 63.4 | 63.4 |
| Expected Annual Loss Score | 63.5 | 63.5 |
FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) scores are county-level percentiles (0–100). Higher disaster safety score = lower relative risk. State-level values are county averages.
Crime, schools, childcare, and environment data shown at state level. Metro-specific data for these dimensions is not available.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Albany more expensive than Portland? ▼
Albany has a cost of living index of 102.1 compared to Portland's 105.4 (national average = 100). Portland is 3.3 points above Albany on the BEA Regional Price Parity scale.
What is the rent difference between Albany and Portland? ▼
A 2-bedroom apartment averages $1,500/mo in Albany vs $1,922/mo in Portland, based on HUD Fair Market Rent data. Studios range from $1,034/mo to $1,570/mo.
How do salaries compare between Albany and Portland? ▼
The average median salary across all occupations is $67,935 in Albany and $79,572 in Portland, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. After adjusting for cost of living, $100,000 in Albany has the same purchasing power as $103,253 in Portland.
Is Albany or Portland safer? ▼
At the state level, OR has a violent crime rate of 334.6 per 100,000 residents compared to OR's 334.6 per 100,000. Property crime rates are 2409.8 vs 2409.8 per 100,000 respectively, based on FBI Uniform Crime Report data.
How do schools compare between Albany and Portland? ▼
OR has 1,277 public schools with an average student-teacher ratio of 17.6:1, while OR has 1,277 schools at 17.6:1. Charter schools make up 10.1% of OR schools vs 10.1% in OR. Data from the National Center for Education Statistics.
Where does the comparison data come from? ▼
All data comes from official U.S. government sources: Bureau of Economic Analysis (cost of living), HUD (fair market rents), BLS (wages), FBI UCR (crime), NCES (schools), Department of Labor (childcare), EPA (environment, air quality, water safety), HRSA (healthcare access), and FEMA NRI (disaster risk). No crowdsourced estimates or proprietary ratings are used.
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Data from BEA, HUD, FBI UCR, BLS OES, NCES, DOL, EPA AQS, EPA SDWIS, HRSA, and FEMA NRI. Not affiliated with the U.S. Government.
Disclaimer: This comparison is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or relocation advice. Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.
Related
Data sourced from official public datasets, current as of 2026. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCompare Editorial